Description

Guns, Gore & Cannoli is a 2D side-scrolling shooter with mechanics similar to the Metal Slug series and a hand-drawn Belgian comic book-style aesthetics. The game is set during the 1920s Prohibition in the United States. The protagonist is Vinnie Cannoli, an enforcer for the mob. The mob boss Belluccio sends him on an assignment to travel to Thugtown and bring back someone called Frankie. When he arrives there, he soon discovers something is wrong in the town. It has been taken over by rioters, who turn out to be zombies. Meanwhile there are also groups of gangsters who do not like having Vinnie around. His first task is to find and bring back Frankie, but Vinnie soon discovers leaving Thugtown alive may be the real goal. The game's story and visual style is adapted from Hell Bent For Whiskey, an animated short film about the mafia by the developers.

Vinnie moves through the side-scrolling environments, taking out gangsters and zombies. He can duck, jump and there are also small platform elements. Almost all weapons are guns and these include a regular pistol, a powerful Magnum, a Tommy gun, a Lupara (sawn-off shotgun) along with a regular shotgun, a flamethrower, a bazooka, a Maxim gun and a Tesla coil. He can also throw grenades and Molotov cocktails. Except for the regular pistol all guns have a limited amount of ammo and regularly require pick-ups. Health is replenished by eating Cannoli, the Sicilian pastry dessert. Most zombie enemies attempt to get close and attack in group. There are butcher-like giants that throw knives, women with a poisonous breath, and flying leprechaun-like creatures hanging from balloons, dead soldiers, giants throwing barrels and so on. Gangsters usually attack using bats or by shooting guns. Bullets often travel slowly enough to dodge them by jumping or ducking. Weapons require reloading, costing valuable time, and it is possible to switch between all available weapons right away. Enemies can be kicked to keep them at a distance, for instance while reloading. Many objects such as barrels and cars can be shot to set them on fire and make them explode. Head shots are rewarded and kill enemies faster. There are regular checkpoints and animated cut-scenes between missions.

The game supports local multiplayer matches for up to four players in single screen levels where all four characters are shown on the same screen. Optionally these matches can be played with AI-controlled bots as well. Settings include different maps, the type of weapons (light or heavy), a time limit and a kill limit. The main story campaign can be played cooperatively with two players, also on the same screen.